In order to provide a protective outer layer, many items of manufacture (e.g. pieces of equipment including cars, trucks and the like) are painted with one or more coats of paint. As the equipment ages and is used, in many cases the paint must be touched up or, alternately, one or more new coats of paint must be applied to maintain an effective anticorrosion barrier. Exemplary of such a requirement is transportation equipment including cars, trucks as well as larger equipment including railway cars.
In order to provide an effective anti-corrosion barrier, as well as to look aesthetically pleasing, the equipment is typically painted in an enclosed area ("a paint spray booth"). The use of the enclosed space reduces the amount of contaminants with are permitted to come in contact with the equipment while it is being painted. These contaminants tend to have a deleterious effect on the integrity of the coat of paint and provide weak spots where the equipment may be prone to corrosion. The use of a paint spray booth enables the amount of contaminants to be reduced and provides for a more consistent coat of paint.
The equipment is painted, for example, with a paint spray gun. Air is fed to the paint spray gun a hose which is connected to a compressor or the like. Typically, the compressor is affixed to a point outside the paint spray booth. Therefore, a sufficient length of hose must be used to permit the worker to circumnavigate the equipment so as to allow all exterior surfaces of the equipment to be painted. Typically, the hose is dragged around the equipment when it is painted. This method is disadvantageous from a safety point of view as well as a contamination point of view. In the first place, since the hose is in continual movement, the worker must keep a constant eye on the hose to ensure that he does not trip over the hose. In addition, as the hose moves, the worker must carefully guide the hose around the equipment to ensure that the hose does not come into contact with the equipment.
Typically, a worker in a paint spray booth wares a helmet that is supplied with air. In some cases, the air might be supplied via a tank which is strapped to the back of the worker. In other cases, air may be supplied to the worker via a second feed hose. This process results in twice as much hose being present on the floor of the paint spray booth and provides twice as much hose over which the worker may trip.